About Henry "Gifts of the Magi" - the moral beauty of the soul of the heroes. O

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According to legend, the gifts of the Magi are the precious incense that the three wise sorcerers presented to the baby Jesus. They saw a star flare up in the east and realized that the savior of the world had been born. From here came the custom of giving gifts to your loved ones on Christmas Day.

In O. Henry's story, everything happens differently. “Furnished room for eight dollars a week. The atmosphere is not that of blatant poverty, but rather eloquently silent poverty. Downstairs, on the front door, a letterbox through which no letter could squeeze in, and an electric bell button from which no mortal could squeeze out a sound, ”is the description of the small apartment in which the young spouses live. Young Della wants to choose a Christmas gift for her husband, because Christmas is a holiday that is usually celebrated with family, with loved ones and loved ones and give gifts to each other. They love each other, and no treasure seems to Della worthy of a husband. But all the injustice and truth of life lies in money: “One dollar eighty-seven cents. That was it. Of these, sixty cents are in one cent coins. For each of these coins I had to bargain with a grocer, a greengrocer, a butcher, so that even my ears burned from the silent disapproval that such thrift caused ... One dollar eighty-seven cents. And tomorrow is Christmas ... ”And how I would like to give my loved one much more than I can afford. It's sad, but there's nothing you can do about it.

Della does not spare her treasure - her hair, because “how many joyful hours she spent thinking up what to give him for Christmas! Something very special, rare, precious, something even slightly worthy of the high honor of belonging to Jim. She has no regrets when she goes to sell her hair in order to buy a watch chain she likes and give it to her husband. Although there was one moment of fear. “Lord, make sure that he doesn’t like me!” she whispered as she heard Jim's footsteps on the stairs. And how many joyful forebodings were in her head: "With such a chain, Jim in any society would not be ashamed to ask what time it is."

It turned out that Jim was thinking the same thing. His most precious possession is a gold watch that belonged to his father and grandfather. But he also ardently desired to make the most best gift your loved one to fulfill her dream. “There were combs on the table, the same set of combs - one back and two side ones - that Della had long admired reverently in one Broadway window. Lovely combs, real tortoiseshell, with glittering pebbles set into the edges, and just the color of her brown hair. They were expensive…”

The end of the story is both sad and happy at the same time. The sad moment is that the gifts for both turned out to be too good. There is no more hair that shimmered and shone, "like the jets of a chestnut waterfall", "descended below the knees and enveloped almost her entire figure with a cloak." But there is no gold watch, to which the chain was selected with such love and impatience. Is it really all efforts in vain and gifts will remain expensive, but unnecessary? The happy moment is that the husband and wife made priceless gifts to each other, they gave love, devotion, showed their readiness to sacrifice the greatest treasures for each other.

O. Henry only in the last paragraph of the story, as it were, clarifies the meaning of his name. The Magi presented wise and generous gifts that foretold the greatness of Jesus. It also tells about the greatest self-denial, readiness for the sake of one's love for any sacrifice. Simple human love, which the author raises to the height of the wisdom of the Magi, is a huge gift that cannot be bought for any money.

O. Henry with a smile approves of the actions of his heroes. There is an author's digression in the text: "And here I told you an unremarkable story about two stupid children ... Of all the donors, these two were the wisest." The ability to give up a treasure for the sake of a loved one, in order to give him (or her) the greatest pleasure on a holiday - this is the meaning of relationships between people. And the greater the sacrifice, the stronger our love.

1) Features of the genre of the work. The work of the American writer O. Henry "The Gift of the Magi" belongs to the genre of the story.

2) Themes and problems of the story. All the work of O. Henry is imbued with attention to the inconspicuous "little" people, whose troubles and joys he so vividly and vividly depicted in his works. He wants to pay attention to those genuine human values who can always serve as support and consolation in the most difficult life situations. And then something amazing happens: the most seemingly deplorable endings of his short stories begin to be perceived as happy or, in any case, optimistic.

3) The ideological intent of the author. In The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry, a husband sells a watch to buy his young wife a set of hair combs. However, she will not be able to use the gift because she sold her hair in order to buy her husband a watch chain in turn. But the gift, alas, will not be useful to him either, since he no longer has a watch. Sad and ridiculous story. And yet, when O. Henry says in the finale that “of all the donors, these two were the wisest”, we cannot but agree with him, for the true wisdom of the heroes, according to the author, is not in the “gifts of the Magi”, but in their love and selfless devotion to each other. The joy and warmth of human communication in the full range of its manifestations - love and participation, self-denial, true, disinterested friendship - these are the life guidelines that, according to O. Henry, can brighten up human existence and make it meaningful and happy.

How do you understand the meaning of the finale of the story: “But let it be said for the edification of the wise men of our day, that of all the donors these two were the wisest. Of all those who offer and receive gifts, only those like them are truly wise. Anywhere and everywhere. They are the Magi"? (explaining the meaning of the title of the story)

4) Features of the plot of the work. O. Henry gives the character of a literary riddle to his touching story about the life of the poor, and the reader does not know what the outcome of events will be.

How are Della and Jim doing? (poor)

What two treasures does this young American family have? (Della's lovely hair and Jim's gold watch)

5) Characteristics of the heroes of the story.

The embodiment of the lyrical feeling in the story is female image Dells. The male image - Jim Jung - is the bearer of a certain author's thought: nobility and depth of feelings, fidelity, sincerity. It was the intonation of Della's speech ("But she immediately, nervous and in a hurry, began to pick them up again. Then, again hesitating, she stood motionless for a minute, and two or three tears fell on the shabby red carpet"), Jim - a description of the internal state of the character: identifies and fixes the most important features of his personality, helps to understand and present him as a person.

How did Della and Jim manage their most valuable possessions? How does this fact characterize the characters? (Della and Jim donated their most prized possessions to give a gift to their loved one)

6) Artistic Features works. The humor in the story reveals the inferiority of life, emphasizing, exaggerating, hyperbolizing it, making it tangible, concrete in the works. In O. Henry, humor is often associated with comic situations that underlie many plots. They help the writer to debunk certain negative phenomena of reality. Resorting to parody and paradox, O. Henry reveals the unnatural essence of such phenomena and their incompatibility with the normal practice of human behavior. The humor of O. Henry is unusually rich in shades, impetuous, whimsical, he keeps the author's speech as if under current and does not allow the narrative to go along a predicted channel. It is impossible to separate irony and humor from the narrative of O. Henry - this is his “element, natural environment his talent. O. Henry has an unsurpassed ability to see the comedy in life situations. It is this organic property that gives rise to such comparisons, surprising in their accuracy: “Jim stood motionless at the door, like a setter smelling a quail”, “gifts of the Magi”. One more distinctive feature story is the superiority of the lyrical beginning over the epic. The lyrical feeling is expressed simply, elegantly: "... I have here told you an unremarkable story below about two stupid children from an eight-dollar apartment who, in the most unfortunate way, sacrificed their greatest treasures for each other."

Gifts of the Magi. O "Henry. Gifts of the Magi. O" Henry

One dollar eighty seven cents. That was it. Of these, sixty cents are in one cent coins. For each of these coins, one had to bargain with a grocer, a greengrocer, a butcher, so that even the ears burned with the silent disapproval that such frugality aroused. Della counted three times. One dollar eighty seven cents. And tomorrow is Christmas.

The only thing that could be done here was to slam on the old couch and cry. That's exactly what Della did. Where does the philosophical conclusion come from that life consists of tears, sighs and smiles, and sighs predominate.

While the mistress of the house goes through all these stages, let's look at the house itself. Furnished apartment for eight dollars a week. The atmosphere is not so much blatant poverty, but rather eloquently silent poverty. Below, on the front door, a letter-box, through which no letter could squeeze, and an electric bell-button, from which no mortal could make a sound. To this was added a card bearing the inscription: "Mr. James Dillingham Young." "Dillingham" came into full swing during a recent period of prosperity, when the owner of the said name received thirty dollars a week. Now, with that income reduced to twenty dollars, the letters in the word "Dillingham" faded, as if seriously wondering if it could be reduced to a modest and unassuming "D"? But when Mr. James Dillingham Jung came home and went upstairs to his apartment, he was invariably greeted with the exclamation of "Jim!" - and the tender embrace of Mrs. James Dillingham Young, already introduced to you under the name of Della. And this is really, really cute.

Della stopped crying and brushed her puff over her cheeks. She now stood at the window and looked despondently at the gray cat walking along the gray fence along the gray yard. Tomorrow is Christmas, and she only has one dollar and eighty-seven cents for a present for Jim! For many months she gained literally every cent, and that's all she achieved. Twenty dollars a week won't get you far. The expenses turned out to be more than she expected. This is always the case with spending. Just a dollar and eighty-seven cents for Jim's present! Her Jim! How many joyful hours she spent thinking about what to give him for Christmas. Something very special, rare, precious, something just a little worthy of the high honor of belonging to Jim.

In the wall between the windows stood a dressing table. Have you ever looked into the dressing table of an eight-dollar furnished apartment? A very thin and very mobile person can, by observing the successive change of reflections in his narrow doors, form a fairly accurate idea of \u200b\u200bhis own appearance. Della, who was of a frail build, managed to master this art.

She suddenly jumped away from the window and rushed to the mirror. Her eyes sparkled, but the color drained from her face in twenty seconds. With a quick movement, she pulled out the hairpins and loosened her hair.

I must tell you that the James Dillingham Jungs had two treasures that were their pride. One is Jim's gold watch that belonged to his father and grandfather, the other is Della's hair. If the Queen of Sheba lived in the house opposite, Della, after washing her hair, would certainly dry her loose hair at the window - especially in order to make all the outfits and jewelry of Her Majesty fade. If King Solomon served in the same house as a porter and kept all his wealth in the basement, Jim would take his watch out of his pocket every time he passed by. - especially to see how he tears his beard out of envy.

And then Della's beautiful hair fell apart, shining and shimmering like the jets of a chestnut waterfall. They descended below the knees and wrapped almost her entire figure in a cloak. But she immediately, nervous and in a hurry, began to pick them up again. Then, as if hesitating, she stood motionless for a minute, and two or three tears fell on the shabby red carpet.

An old brown jacket on her shoulders, an old brown hat on her head - and, tossing her skirts, flashing with wet sparkles in her eyes, she was already rushing down to the street.

The sign at which she stopped read: “M-me Sophronie. All kinds of hair products. Della ran up to the second floor and stopped, panting for breath.

Will you buy my hair? she asked madam.
"I buy hair," replied Madame. - Take off your hat, we need to look at the goods.

The chestnut waterfall flowed again.

Twenty dollars,” said madam, habitually weighing the thick mass on her hand.
"Let's hurry," Della said.

The next two hours flew by on pink wings - I apologize for the hackneyed metaphor. Della was shopping around looking for a present for Jim.

Finally she found. No doubt it was made for Jim, and only for him. Nothing like it was found in other stores, and she turned everything upside down in them. It was a platinum pocket watch chain, simple and austere in design, captivating by its true qualities, not by ostentation, as all good things should be. She, perhaps, could even be recognized as worthy of a watch. As soon as Della saw it, she knew that the chain must belong to Jim. She was just like Jim himself. Modesty and dignity - these qualities distinguished both. Twenty-one dollars had to be paid to the cashier, and Della hurried home with eighty-seven cents in her pocket. With such a chain, Jim in any society will not be ashamed to ask what time it is. Gorgeous as his watch was, he often glanced at it furtively, because it hung on a wretched leather strap.

At home, Della's excitement subsided and gave way to forethought and calculation. She took out her curling iron, lit the gas, and set about repairing the damage caused by generosity combined with love. And this is always the hardest work, my friends, gigantic work.

In less than forty minutes, her head was covered with cool little curls that made her surprisingly like a boy who had run away from lessons. She looked at herself in the mirror with a long, attentive and critical look.

Well, she told herself, if Jim doesn't kill me as soon as he looks at me, he'll think I look like a Coney Island chorus girl. But what was I to do, oh, what was I to do, since I had only a dollar and eighty-seven cents!”

At seven o'clock the coffee was brewed, and the red-hot frying pan stood on gas stove waiting for lamb cutlets.

Jim was never late. Della clutched the platinum chain in her hand and sat on the edge of the table close to front door. Soon she heard his footsteps down the stairs and turned pale for a moment. She had a habit of turning to God with short prayers about all sorts of everyday little things, and she whispered hastily:

Lord, make it so that he does not like me!

The door opened and Jim entered and closed it behind him. He had a thin, worried face. It's not easy being burdened with a family at twenty-two! He needed a new coat for a long time, and his hands were freezing without gloves.

Jim stood motionless at the door, like a setter smelling a quail. His eyes rested on Della with an expression she couldn't understand, and she became frightened. It wasn't anger, or surprise, or reproach, or horror—none of the feelings one might expect. He just stared at her without taking his eyes off her, and his face did not change its strange expression.

Della jumped off the table and rushed to him.

Jim, dear, she cried, don't look at me like that! I cut my hair and sold it because I wouldn't mind if I didn't have anything to give you for Christmas. They will grow back. You're not angry, are you? I couldn't help it. My hair grows very fast. Well, wish me a Merry Christmas, Jim, and let's enjoy the holiday. If you knew what a gift I have prepared for you, what a wonderful, wonderful gift!

Did you cut your hair? Jim asked with tension, as if, despite the increased brain activity, he still could not grasp this fact.

Yes, she cut her hair and sold it, - said Della. "But you'll still love me, won't you?" I'm still the same, albeit with short hair.

Jim looked around the room in bewilderment.

So, your braids are gone, then? he asked with a senseless insistence.
"Don't look, you won't find them," said Della. - I'm telling you: I sold them - cut them off and sold them.

Today is Christmas Eve, Jim. Be nice to me, because I did it for you. Maybe the hairs on my head can be counted,” she continued, and her gentle voice suddenly sounded serious, “but no one, no one could measure my love for you! Fry cutlets, Jim?

And Jim came out of his daze. He pulled his Della into his arms. Let's be modest and take a few seconds to consider some foreign object. Which is more - eight dollars a week or a million a year? A mathematician or a sage will give you the wrong answer. The magi brought precious gifts, but there was not one among them. However, these vague hints will be explained further.

Jim took a bundle from his coat pocket and tossed it on the table.

Don't get me wrong, Dell, he said. - No hairstyle and haircut can make me stop loving my girl. But unfold this bundle, and then you will understand why I was a little taken aback at the first minute.

For there were combs on the table, the same set of combs - one back and two side ones - which Della had long admired reverently in one Broadway window. Lovely combs, real tortoiseshell, with glittering pebbles set into the edges, and just the color of her brown hair. They were expensive - Della knew this - and her heart long languished and languished from an unrealizable desire to possess them. And now they belonged to her, but there are no longer beautiful braids that would adorn their desired brilliance.

Nevertheless, she pressed the combs to her chest, and when at last she found the strength to raise her head and smile through her tears, she said:
- My hair grows very fast, Jim!

Then she suddenly jumped up like a scalded kitten and exclaimed:
- Oh my god!

After all, Jim had not yet seen her wonderful gift. She hurriedly handed him the chain in her open palm. The matte precious metal seemed to play in the rays of her stormy and sincere joy.

Isn't it lovely, Jim? I ran all over the city until I found this. Now you can watch at least a hundred times a day what time it is. Give me a watch. I want to see what it will look like all together.
But Jim, instead of obeying, lay down on the couch, put both hands under his head and smiled.

Dell," he said, "we'll have to hide our presents for now, let them lie down for a while. They are too good for us now. I sold the watch to buy you combs. And now, perhaps, it's time to fry the cutlets.

The Magi, those who brought gifts to the baby in the manger, were, as you know, wise, surprisingly wise people. It was they who started the fashion to make Christmas gifts. And since they were wise, their gifts were wise, perhaps even with a stipulated right of exchange in case of unsuitability. And here I was telling you an unremarkable story about two stupid children from an eight-dollar apartment who, in the most unwise way, sacrificed their greatest treasures for each other. But let it be said for the edification of the wise of our day, that of all the givers these two were the wisest. Of all those who offer and receive gifts, only those like them are truly wise. Anywhere and everywhere. They are the wolves.

Of course, you remember the famous statement of the Russian writer A.P. Chekhov: "Brevity is the sister of talent." The master of the short story in American literature of the late 19th century is the writer O. Henry, whose work you will learn in this lesson. You will also read and analyze O. Henry's story "The Gift of the Magi", which clearly showed the talent and skill of the writer.

Topic: Foreign literature XlX century

Lesson: O. Henry. About the writer. The story "Gifts of the Magi"

Today we are discovering the pages of creativity of an amazing, kind and intelligent interlocutor, the American writer O. Henry (Fig. 1). His real name is William Sidney Porter.

Rice. 1. O. Henry. A photo ()

Porter began his first literary experiments in the 1880s. Since 1894, in Austin, he has published the humorous weekly Rolling Stone, almost entirely filled with his own essays, drawings, jokes and stories.

But the life of the writer was not as cloudless as it seems to us. It contained amazing ups and downs, terrible dramatic collisions, and this diversity of life was reflected in the plots of his works, sometimes surprising and unexpected.

The American writer O. Henry earned his fame as a master of a short story, especially popular in American literature under the name "short story". And this one short story- this is small world, into which O. Henry introduces us, a world that lives according to the laws of purity, ethics, humanity.

Analysis of the story "Gifts of the Magi"

Rice. 2. Book cover ()

Genre of the work

Novella - (from Italian novella - news) - one of the small epic genres: a genre form close to the story that arose in the Renaissance. Unlike the short story, the short story pays more attention to the plot, which, as a rule, is distinguished by the dynamism of events, the unexpectedness of their development and denouement.

Plot - a chain, a series of events in an epic or dramatic work, which is the basis of the plot. Unlike the plot, the plot can be briefly recounted. “The plot is what really happened, the plot is how the reader found out about it” (B.M. Tomashevsky).

Turning to the novel "Gifts of the Magi", I want to take epigraph from Sonnet 56 by William Shakespeare.

For love to be dear to us

Let the ocean be the hour of separation

Let two, going to the shore,

Hands stretch out one to the other

Gift- gift, offering, donation.

Magi - they are wizards, sorcerers, sorcerers.

The events of the story take place around Christmas. Under New Year and Christmas people believe in a miracle, in happy changes in their lives, give each other gifts. The main characters of the story are the young spouses Della and Jim.

The role of the interior in the novel "Gifts of the Magi"

Interior - the interior of the premises, domestic environment, people's environment. It can act as a means of characterization.

“... let's look at the house itself. Furnished apartment for eight dollars a week. The atmosphere is not so much blatant poverty, but rather eloquently silent poverty. Below, on the front door, a letter-box, through which no letter could squeeze, and an electric bell-button, from which no mortal could make a sound. To this was added a card bearing the inscription: "Mr. James Dillingham Young." "Dillingham" came into full swing during a recent period of prosperity, when the owner of the said name received thirty dollars a week. Now, after that income had dropped to twenty dollars, the letters in the word Dillingham had faded, as if seriously wondering if it could be reduced to a modest and unpretentious "D"?

epithets: blatant poverty, eloquently silent poverty.

Comparisons: the letters seem to have faded, thoughtful.

Avatars: the letters are thoughtful.

The interior in O. Henry's story "The Gift of the Magi" is a means of characterizing the main characters. And we understand that our heroes Della and Jim are poor, but happy.

The interior here also characterizes the social status of the characters. The description of the dwelling tells us about the plight of the heroes, but at the same time another thought of the author is also important.

The idea of the work "Gifts of the Magi"

The whole novel is based on antithesis. The material side of life is opposed to the spirituality of our heroes. Despite the fact that they lived in poverty, sometimes starving, they did not lose their spirituality and purity. And most importantly, they were able to show care and attention towards each other. It is the feeling of love that warms these people in a small eight-dollar apartment. Such a life did not embitter our heroes. A world in which evil reigns, in which people are cruel and sometimes do not pay attention to the suffering of others, did not spoil these heroes, and they continue to carry such feelings in their souls as love, humanity and kindness.

The role of the portrait in the novel "The Gift of the Magi"

Portrait (French - image) - an image of the hero's appearance.

The most striking in the novel is the portrait of Della (Fig. 3). Description of Della we can find in different parts story. And if you put the portrait together, this is what happens:

"Delle, who was frail..."

“She suddenly jumped away from the window and rushed to the mirror. Her eyes sparkled, but the color drained from her face in twenty seconds. With a quick movement, she pulled out the hairpins and loosened her hair.

I must tell you that the James Dillingham Jungs had two treasures that were their pride. One is Jim's gold watch that belonged to his father and grandfather, the other is Della's hair."

“And now Della's beautiful hair fell apart, shining and shimmering, like the jets of a chestnut waterfall. They descended below the knees and wrapped almost her entire figure in a cloak.

"The chestnut waterfall flowed again."

Later in the story we will meet such descriptions of the heroine:

"An old brown jacket on her shoulders, an old brown hat on her head - and, tossing her skirts, flashing with wet sparkles in her eyes, she was already rushing down to the street."

As you can see, the main thing in the portrait of Della is the description of the hair, special attention is paid to it, precisely because it was the main, one of the two treasures of the family.

Visual and expressive means:

Epithets: beautiful hair.

Comparisons: like the jets of a chestnut waterfall.

The plot of the work

Plot (French - subject) - an event or set of events in epic and dramatic works, the development of which allows the writer to reveal the characters of the characters and the essence of the phenomena depicted in accordance with the author's intention.

The structural elements of the plot are the plot, the development of the action, the climax, the decline in the action and the denouement.

Prolo d: description of the room.

tie short story: Della's decision to sell her hair.

climax: buying gifts.

unexpected interchange a: gifts were not useful to either spouse.

Plot Feature- it is an unexpected denouement. This authorial style is characteristic of the writer O. Henry.

Composition features

Composition - the construction of a work of art, the location and interconnection of its parts, images, episodes in accordance with the content, genre form and intent of the author.

A feature of the composition of the short story by O. Henry "The Gift of the Magi" is the introduction of an episode about the gifts of the Magi (Fig. 4). This episode is important for understanding the main idea of the story.

Rice. 4. Gifts of the Magi. Bible story ()

Let's look at the Bible story. When the baby Jesus was born, a star lit up in the East. The Magi realized that it was the man who was born who would save the world. And then they went to bow to the baby, taking gifts with them. And as a gift they brought him gold, frankincense and myrrh. Gold was a symbol of royal power, incense was used for fragrant incense, that is, it was a symbol of the divinity of the baby. And myrrh is a fragrant resin that has the power to protect the body from decay, its feature was bitterness. And it was the bitter myrrh that became a symbol of the suffering of the baby on the cross.

From here came the custom to present friends, acquaintances, relatives and relatives with gifts for Christmas.

The meaning of the title of the novel "Gifts of the Magi"

“The Magi, those who brought gifts to the baby in the manger, were, as you know, wise, surprisingly wise people. It was they who started the fashion to make Christmas gifts. And since they were wise, their gifts were wise, perhaps even with a stipulated right of exchange in case of unsuitability. And here I was telling you an unremarkable story about two stupid children from an eight-dollar apartment who, in the most unwise way, sacrificed their greatest treasures for each other. But let it be said for the edification of the wise of our day, that of all the givers these two were the wisest. Of all those who offer and receive gifts, only those like them are truly wise. Anywhere and everywhere. They are the Magi."

Father Henry draws a wise conclusion: the magi brought gifts, but among them there was no chief. He does not name what exactly is most important, but we understand that this is what our heroes had, love and loyalty. And you can't buy them, even if you have a million dollars in your pocket.

The novel has a happy ending. Husband and wife gave each other the main thing. This is a priceless gift - love. This is an ingenuous willingness to sacrifice for each other their most important treasures. And for O. Henry, it is precisely this side of people's lives that is important - their spiritual beginning, moral purity.

Bibliography

Korovina V.Ya. Didactic materials on literature. 7th grade. — 2008.
Tishchenko O.A. Homework in literature for the 7th grade (to the textbook by V.Ya. Korovina). — 2012.
Kuteynikova N.E. Literature lessons in grade 7. — 2009.
Korovina V.Ya. Literature textbook. 7th grade. Part 1. - 2012.
Korovina V.Ya. Literature textbook. 7th grade. Part 2. - 2009.
O.Henry. Films and cartoons based on works ().

Homework

Compare the short stories of O. Henry with the stories read by A.P. Chekhov. What unites these authors?
Read a novel by O. Henry (your choice). Define its theme, idea. Make a plan. What is the peculiarity of the composition, the plot?
In an essay on what topic could you cite as an example the short story “Gifts of the Magi”? Write a short essay.

Lesson type: a lesson in studying the text of a work of art.

Class: 6

Type of lesson: a lesson in artistic perception.

Lesson Form: heuristic conversation

Methods:

creative reading method
- role reading
- first person reading
reproductive
heuristic

TCO: assessment sheets, image of a monument to the book by O. Henry<Picture 1>, portrait of a writer<Figure 2>

Goals:

educational:
- identify true and false values in human life;
- explain the meaning of the title of the story;
- characterize the author's understanding of wisdom and happiness;
mental development:
- develop the attention of students;
- form logical thinking during text analysis;
educational:
- develop a sense of respect and self-worth;
- define true values as spiritual;
creative: provide an opportunity to show creativity.

Epigraph:

A gift is a blessing to the giver.
F. Herbert

During the classes

I.Updating of basic knowledge. Installation on perception.

I want to start our conversation today with an unusual question:

Who do you think people put monuments to?

Why are people given this honor?

And why, in your opinion, you can put a monument to the book?

And it was this honor that was awarded to the work of the writer O. Henry. His stone book, 2 meters high, stands open in the USA in the city of Greensboro. I think it's easy to guess in which story it is revealed.

And today we have to continue our acquaintance with the personality of the writer and try to understand what is unusual about the story "Gifts of the Magi".

The topic of our lesson sounds like this: "True and False Values in O. Henry's story "The Gift of the Magi."

Try to define lesson objectives?

At the end of the lesson, we must answer main question: which values are true and which are false, who is truly happy and wise, according to the writer?

II. Working with associations. Student messages.

Let's look at the title of the story.

What associations does the word evoke in you? "gift" ?

O: gift - goodness, love, joy, holiday, mother

Let's open the board with the dictionary definition and ask the students to read the dictionary definition and make additions to their associations: gift - donation, ability, talent.

Let us turn to the epigraph "A gift is a blessing to the giver." What characteristic of the word "gift" can be taken from the epigraph?

O: gift - blessing

Listen to the story of the writer's life and write down O. Henry's character traits in your notebook.

Student message:

Real name O. Henry William Sidney Porter .

He is the author of more than 280 stories, sketches, humoresques and was born in Greensboro, USA. His life was unhappy from childhood. When he was three years old, his mother died of tuberculosis. His father sent him to live with his aunt. At school, the child stood out for his sharp mind, rich imagination and the ability to draw with one hand and simultaneously solve arithmetic problems with the other. After school, the young man began working in his uncle's pharmacy, but at the age of 19 he developed a cough similar to tuberculosis, and a family friend suggested that William go to work on a ranch in Texas, a state with a dry and hot climate. The owner of the ranch had a rich library, the young cowboy read a lot and began to write stories himself, however, he did not try to offer them to anyone and soon destroyed them. But two years later, William went to the big, according to the then concepts, the city of Austin.

Here he changed several professions. He worked in a cigar shop, in a real estate company, learned to play the guitar and sang in a quartet, which was eagerly invited to picnics and weddings. He published humorous drawings in magazines that did not bring either money or fame.

Having married, W. Porter decided to settle down and took a job as a cashier at the First National Bank of Austin. When the embezzlement was discovered, Porter was charged with theft. All his friends and colleagues swore that the young cashier could not appropriate the depositors' money, and the court dropped all charges against Porter. Nevertheless, William left the bank, moved to Houston, and began working for a local paper as an artist and columnist. However, the auditors began to dig deeper, found in the bank books a big mess and a shortage - this time at $4,703.

In January 1897 he was arrested. While Porter was awaiting trial, important changes took place in his life. His wife, who had been ill for a long time, passed away. The daughter was taken in by the wife's parents. One of the American magazines accepted for publication his story from the life of cowboys and asked for more, but the author was not up to the pen. At the trial, he behaved indifferently and on April 25, 1898, the aspiring writer was sent to prison for five years.

Here he worked, remembering his youth, in a prison pharmacy. When it was discovered that a certain amount of pharmacy alcohol was missing and the pharmacist was suspected, he flared up: "I'm not a thief! I have not stolen a single cent in my life! I was accused of embezzlement, but I'm sitting for someone else who pocketed this money!" The pharmacy did not take up much time, and Porter continued to write stories, sending them to the wild through the sister of one of the inmates. He began to sign his compositions with the name "O. Henry".

For impeccable behavior, the prisoner was released not after five years, but after three years and three months. The stories written in prison were sold like hot cakes in the magazines, and the publishers sent him a hundred dollars so that he could get to New York.

In his first year in New York, Porter published 17 stories, a few years later he was publishing a story a week or more, at the height of his popularity he was paid $ 500 per story - a lot of money for that time. But the money was constantly not enough, they flowed out of his hands like sand. Often he distributed large banknotes to the poor, and even brought a homeless tramp to the doctor and paid for treatment and medicines. Bottom big city became a source of his inspiration. Often, O. Henry spent whole days sitting in dubious drinking establishments, drawing stories from the stories of the same regulars.

Often O. Henry wrote in great haste, spurred on by the need to work off a long-spent advance. In 1903, he entered into an agreement with the owner of the newspaper "World" Joseph Pulitzer, undertaking to give a story to every Sunday issue.

One of the editors recalled: “I came with a question whether the story was ready.“ Ready, ready, ”the writer replied. And he showed me Blank sheet with the title and the number 1 in the corner. Then on next sheet he wrote a deuce in the corner, took three more sheets and, having written a 5 on the last one, said: "Well, now, with your permission, I will rest."

In the late fall of 1905, O. Henry agreed to write a Christmas story for Pulitzer. The promised deadline passed, and the editor received nothing but an apology and excuses. Finally, the artist who was supposed to illustrate the work came to the writer's closet to get acquainted with the draft and understand what should be drawn. It turned out that even a draft did not exist yet. The unfortunate illustrator asked at least to tell him the main idea of the story.

"I'll tell you what to draw, buddy," replied the writer. drawers, bed and closet. A man and a woman sit side by side on the bed. They talk about the coming Christmas. A man fiddles with a pocket watch case. The woman has luxurious long hair falling on the back. That's all I see so far. But the story is coming soon."

This is how the story "Gifts of the Magi" appeared, which was soon translated into all languages of the world.

III. Reading text. Conversation.

Who are the main characters in O. Henry's story?

A: Jim and Della

How is the home of the characters described? Find the details the writer uses.

Let's visit a cheap New York apartment together with you and watch the heroes.

IV. Dramatization of the episode (two participants: Della and the author behind the scenes).

Della: One dollar eighty seven cents. And that's all. Of these, sixty cents are in one cent coins. For each of these coins, I had to bargain with a grocer, a greengrocer, a butcher, so that even my ears burned with silent disapproval, which such frugality aroused. (counted three times). One dollar eighty seven cents. Tomorrow is Christmas (cries).

Life consists of tears, sighs and smiles, with sighs predominating. While the mistress of the house goes through all these stages, let's look at the house itself. Furnished apartment for eight dollars a week. The atmosphere is not so much blatant poverty, but rather eloquently silent poverty. Below, on the front door, a letter-box, through which no letter could squeeze, and an electric bell-button, from which no mortal could make a sound. To this was added a card with the inscription: "Mr. James Dillingham Young" "Dillingham" ... the letters in the word "Dillingham" faded, as if in earnest thought: should they not be reduced to a modest and unassuming "D"? But when Mr. James Dillingham Young came home and went upstairs to his apartment, he was invariably greeted with the cry: "Jim!" and the tender embrace of Mrs. James Dillingham Young, already introduced to you under the name of Della. And this is really, really cute.

Della ends up crying and running her puff over her cheeks. She now stood at the window and looked despondently at the gray cat walking along the gray fence along the gray yard.

Della: Tomorrow is Christmas, and I only have one dollar and eighty-seven cents for Jim's present! For many months I gained literally every cent, and this is all that I have achieved. Twenty dollars a week won't get you far. The expenses turned out to be more than I expected. This is always the case with spending. Just a dollar and eighty-seven cents for Jim's present! My Jim! How many happy hours I spent thinking about what to give him for Christmas. Something very special, rare, precious, something just a little worthy of the high honor of belonging to Jim.

Dela bounces off the window and rushes to the mirror. With a quick movement, she pulls out the hairpins and loosens her hair.

What qualities of Della's character are revealed to us?

What treasures do heroes have? Find their descriptions.

How is their beauty highlighted?

Why are they superior to the treasures of the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon?

How does Della choose a gift? Find the description in the text.

What does she sacrifice for Jimm?

V. Role reading. The episode of the meeting of heroes.

Jim stood motionless at the door, like a quail smelling a setter. His eyes rested on Della with an expression she could not understand, and she became Terrified. It was neither anger, nor surprise, nor reproach, nor horror - none of the feelings that one might expect. He simply looked at her, not taking his eyes off his face, his strange expression did not change. Della jumped off the table and rushed to him.

Jim, honey, she cried, don't look at me like that. I cut my hair and sold it because I wouldn't mind if I didn't have anything to get you for Christmas. They will grow back. You're not angry, are you? I couldn't help it. My hair grows very fast. Well, wish me a Merry Christmas, Jim, and let's enjoy the holiday. If you knew what a gift I have prepared for you, what a wonderful, wonderful gift!

Did you cut your hair? Jim asked with tension, as if, despite the increased brain activity, he still could not grasp this fact.

Yes, she cut her hair and sold it, - said Della. "But you'll still love me, won't you?" I'm still the same, albeit with short hair.

Jim looked around the room in bewilderment.

So, your braids are gone, then? he asked with a senseless insistence.

Don't look, you won't find them," said Della. - I'm telling you: I sold them - cut them off and sold them. Today is Christmas Eve, Jim. Be nice to me, because I did it for you. Maybe the hairs on my head can be counted,” she continued, and her gentle voice suddenly sounded serious, “but no one, no one could measure my love for you! Fry cutlets, Jim?

Jim took a bundle from his coat pocket and tossed it on the table.

Don't get me wrong, Dell, he said. - No hairstyle and haircut can make me stop loving my girl. But unfold this bundle, and then you will understand why I was a little taken aback at the first minute.

White nimble fingers tore at the twine and paper. There was a cry of delight, immediately - alas! - purely feminine, replaced by a stream of tears and groans, so that it was necessary to immediately apply all the sedatives that were at the disposal of the owner of the house.
For there were combs on the table, the same set of combs - one back and two side ones - which Della had long admired reverently in one Broadway window. Lovely combs, real tortoiseshell, with glittering pebbles set into the edges, and just the color of her brown hair. They were expensive... Della knew this, and her heart was languishing and languishing for a long time from an unrealizable desire to possess them. And now they belonged to her, but there are no longer beautiful braids that would adorn their desired brilliance.

Nevertheless, she pressed the combs to her chest, and when at last she found the strength to raise her head and smile through her tears, she said:

My hair grows really fast, Jim!

Then she suddenly jumped up like a scalded kitten and exclaimed:

Oh my god!

After all, Jim had not yet seen her wonderful gift. She hurriedly handed him the chain in her open palm. The matte precious metal seemed to play in the rays of her stormy and sincere joy.

Isn't it lovely, Jim? I ran all over the city until I found this. Now you can watch at least a hundred times a day what time it is. Give me a watch. I want to see what it will look like all together.

But Jim, instead of obeying, lay down on the couch, put both hands under his head, and

smiled.
"Dell," he said, "we'll have to hide our presents for now, let them lie down for a bit." They are too good for us now. I sold the watch to buy you combs. And now, perhaps, it's time to fry the cutlets.

How would you describe Jim's reaction when he entered the room?

Why did he react like that?

What changes in Jim's behavior can be observed in this episode?

How does Della's reaction change when she sees combs?

Can we call the end of the story a happy one?

What did the heroes really give each other?

Answer the problematic question that we asked at the beginning of the lesson in writing in your notebook. Which values are true and which are false? Add your observations from life.

Reading multiple sentences.

Counselors evaluate student work in class.